About the Journal

The first issue of The Canadian Archivist appeared in 1963. The journal was published by the Archives Section of the Canadian Historical Association and distributed without cost to the members of the Section. The journal would continue to be published once a year until 1974. The following year, Canadian archivists struck out on their own. With the formation of the Association of Canadian Archivists and its own journal Archivaria, The Canadian Archivist came to an end.

The early editions of the CA combined scholarly articles with news updates. Hugh Dempsey edited the first issues of the journal, continuing until 1968. These editions were initially mimeographed or printed on letterpress. The expense of letterpress printing, however, limited the size of the journal to between twenty and thirty pages. When Hugh Taylor became editor in 1969, his first edition was to be the last of the old format. Taking advantage of the lower costs of offset printing and an increased membership (doubling in size since the debut of the first issue) , the journal redefined itself. Modeled on The American Archivist, the new journal was intended to chart what John Archer described in the journal as the slow movement towards a distinctly Canadian methodology. “Our journey should go on record,” wrote Taylor in his 1969 editorial.

1970 saw the debut of the revamped Canadian Archivist, the first issue of the second volume of the journal. It was smaller in dimension but richer in content. Under Taylor’s and Ian Wilson’s (1973-1974) editorial guidance, the journal expanded past the 100 page mark. Concentrating on opinion and research, the “news” side of the original journal was moved to the new Bulletin. With the ending of the formal relationship between professional archivists and the Canadian Historical Association, the last edition (officially, Volume 2, issue 5) was published in 1974 and resembled, if not visually, then in terms of range and content, the first edition of the nascent Archivaria, published the following year.

We are please here to make available all twelve issues of The Canadian Archivist in digital form. We gratefully acknowledge the cooperation and permission of the Canadian Historical Association to publish this material electronically.

A message to authors in The Canadian Archivist:

While the ACA has made considerable effort to reach the many authors who have contributed articles, review, notes, and communications to The Canadian Archivist over its 10 years in publication, it has not been possible to locate and obtain permission from each individual, or their next of kin.

In the event that you do not wish to have your works included in this on-line collection, or have any questions related to the collection, we encourage you to contact the Association of Canadian Archivists' office at your earliest opportunity. Articles for which permission is declined will be removed as quickly as possible following receipt of such direction.

The Canadian Archivist (1963-1974) – Journal of the Archives Section, Canadian Historical Association | ISSN: 1923-6395